To Be Alone
by Edelweiss Roses
Summary: Reem has fled from her captors that had taken her from Africa, which has been her home ever since she was taken from her homeland of England to put into the sex trade before she escaped. She hides in the opera house into the mercy of the Opera Ghost.
1. Chapter One: The Escape

To Be Alone

Chapter One

The consistently persistent ache was growing in intensity as my strong, muscled legs carried me almost effortlessly throughout the cobblestone streets of Paris, France. The stares of the variety of classes that walked the paths did not bother me at all for I knew that I was a sight to behold. I had escaped from a traveling freak show after all!

Kidnapped from my family in England when I was young girl, I had escaped the sex slave trade into the indiscrimatory savannah of Africa where I had lived ever since until my recent capture. It was no small feat surviving in the deadly heat of day and the freezing temperatures of night with only leopard skin clothing and a whole lioness hide to keep my small, but strong body warm and sheltered from the elements. I was bald, which was immensely strange for a girl, and I had a four large gashes across my face and shoulder from an old altercation with an exiled lioness that I soon killed, which is where I had gotten my hide from. I had survived like this for nearly twenty long, excruciating years until one abnormally hot night, while I was bringing home my dinner of a baby zebra that I had scavenged off of a fresh kill from who knows what, I had been swarmed and captured by my new "owners" who instantly put me in their travelling French freak show as their "African Wild Woman." I had just now escaped, fleeing on the streets of Paris on bare, calloused feet, from my captors in the fleeting moment from being dragged out of my cage to get whipped from biting the finger off one of my handlers.

It had been the most opportune moment to escape so I took that chance without a single dark cloud of doubt in my mind.

A loud shot whizzed past my bald, scarred head and into a nearby lamppost. My owners were gaining on me so I painfully forced my aching legs to move even faster. I bolted as fast as my feet could carry me until I came across a huge, beautiful building that was a perfect hiding spot for me to evade my dreaded owners. I vaguely recognized it as an opera house from my innocent childish days in England with my family.

I had loved attending the opera back then...

I darted with panther like grace around the massive building until I found an open door leading to a spiral staircase that travelled underground. I paused for mere seconds as I had never been underneath the Earth's surface before, and heading into the obviously unknown was never a good option, but it was the only viable option I had at that very moment and so, I took it. Speeding down the stone stairs, heading deeper and deeper into the abyss, I noticed that as I continued on the colder it became. I paid no mind to it as I was, indeed, used to the cold African nights.

Without a single warning's notice, I started to fall down a trapdoor as the Earth gave way from beneath my feet. It seemed as if it had been forever that I had been falling until I crashed into a noticeably hotter ground. I came out of the ordeal a little bruised and extremely sore in the legs from my running escape but as soon as I felt familiar ground beneath me, I immediately stood up and took in my new surroundings.

I had obviously not fallen into an elaborate trap from my so called owners as they did not possess nearly enough intelligence to plan this far ahead and to know that I would go down into the base of the opera house so this trap had to be to stop people from going down here and to prevent such people from disturbing whatever, if anything, lived down there.

I was in a scorching hot room that, strangely enough, resembled the African savannah although it seemed much closer to a desert. The heat was exactly the same as in Africa but it was different in a few ways; there was no wildlife whatsoever and there was only one tree...of which a hangman's noose draping from a single branch. The tree was strange in itself as well. Upon closer inspection the tree seemed to be made of metal and not bark and it was bare of any leaves, steel or not. This sight was very unusual in my eyes as the only metal things that I can clearly remember were my shackles and my cage.

As I gazed about the searing hot room, my newest form of a cage, I sensed that something or someone was watching me which made the hair on the back of neck stand up on edge. Standing taller, arching my back and baring my teeth to establish dominance, I let out a deep, guttural growl to let whoever was watching me to know that I was a force to be reckoned with. I swore that I could hear a faint chuckle. Instinctively, I pulled out my handmade bone dagger from my sinew and leopard skin sash and held it in an attack stance. I let out one more warning growl.

Someone was watching me...and waiting; for what I was not sure but I was certain that I did not like it one single bit.

I slammed against the wall that held a moving scene of the all too familiar Saharan desert, since I had almost lost my way and died in there when I made my first escape from being turned into a sex slave when I was six, and let out my loudest, most fearsome roar. I repeated this action against virtually every single one of the seven walls of mirages until I exhausted my already extremely fatigued self.

The only place I had yet to check for an opening was the roof and so, using the rest of what little waning energy I had, I jumped up the metal tree and banged against the ceiling, burning my palm in the process and causing myself to slip, resulting in a decent slice of my foot upon my falling descent to the floor. Cradling my mildly burnt hand, I let out a low whimper in pain but I forced myself not to cry.

I stopped crying long ago.

After checking my hand onceover to make sure that it was alright, or the closest to fine as it possibly could be, I check my bleeding foot and gently licked it clean, wincing every once in awhile from the annoying pain.

After I had finally stopped the blood from oozing out, I took one last look around the room, of which I could have sworn was smaller than what it had been previously, making sure that I was in no immediate danger. And so, I hopped up on my good foot, draping my entire lioness hide, complete with head and paws, over the steel branches of the accursed metal tree beside the noose that was hanging from it so that I could have shade from the searing hot heat to keep me cool. It was crucial that I kept my body temperature from overheating for it would burn through my water resources much more quickly. I knew that I had to conserve the water that was inside my body otherwise I would die if left in this heat for too long. I had survived through bouts of little water in the savannah but with absolutely no accessible water I was as good as dead.

Physically and mentally exhausted, I, resenting every minute of it, laid down on the hot floor. Keeping a firm grip on my trusted bone dagger, I allowed myself to get a much needed rest.

* * *

**I do not own Gaston Leroux's Phantom of the Opera or any of it's excellent characters, especially our beloved Monsieur le fantome de il'opera, Erik. The only character I own is Reem, which is the name that she calls herself in this story since she cannot remember her name from when she was in England. **

**I adore Erik and I will try my very best to stay true to his complicated, genius character. Please let me know if I get him too out of character I will immediately make changes to convey him in his own way.**

**Thank you for reading and please review! The more you review the more frequently I write!**

**-Edelweiss Roses**


	2. Chapter Two: The Voice of a Saviour

To Be Alone

Chapter Two

I was in the torturous chamber what seemed like weeks, but could have only been a few days or so since I have yet to perish from dehydration, when I ultimately came to the conclusion that I was going to die here underneath this metal tree. I did not dare look at the noose hanging tauntingly above me. As much as ended my wretched life right at the very moment, I had too much pride to commit to such an evil task. I had not survived being mauled by a lioness just to end my own life in this horrible cage of mine.

In order to keep cool, I urinated on my knife sash and wrapped it around my head although I almost gagged what little food I had left in my stomach from the act of doing so. I had almost resorted to drinking my own urine in an attempt to retrain some hydration in my body but I knew from experience that this would only make things terribly worse. My laceration on my foot had become badly infected and every hour that I was in this damn room, I sucked out the infectious pus and spit out in the far corner to try to clean the wound, but despite my best efforts it continued to persist in being infected.

After grudgingly admitting defeat, I knew that I was going to die that very day. In fact, I felt ready to die that very minute until I heard a voice...a voice like no other I had ever heard before.

_"Sont vous toujours parmi la vie?"_

The voice, that could be anything but human, came from all around me, wrapping me up in its sweet decadence. It was as if God himself was speaking to me. It would not be hard to believe that it was God as the voice was as beautiful and as pure as one of the archangels in heaven. However, I simply refused to believe that it was He as why would God not speak to me in my native tongue of English, beyond the fact that I had not physically spoken a word of it in what seemed like decades.

My face obviously contorted in confusion and the voice immediately took notice of that fact, as it started to repeadedly speak in languages that I could only dream of learning.

_"Mi capisci?"_

_"Me entiende usted?"_

_"Verstehen Sie mich?"_

"Do you understand me?"

My bald head jerked up as I heard my native English, a language that I only heard now in my thoughts. The voice made of heaven's clouds took my immediate action as understanding as it began to speak only in English.

"You have remarkably survived the longest in my torture chamber and for that fact alone I congradulate you, young man. The most time one has ever taken in there before ending their meager life was little over a day. I must inquire as to your name before you finally perish as your ordeal is indeed worth remembering in my eyes," the magical voice said with as much power as a mighty lion.

As I started to speak, my voice cracked loudly from lack of proper usage other than territorial growls and roars,

"...I...was called...Reem...in Africa..."

Suddenly, a loud word in French was spoken in complete and utter shock of which I presumed to be a swear word.

"_Merde!_ You're a woman!"

In a matter of a few mere seconds, I was pulled out of the bright, burning hot room into the freezing darkness. I was struck blind and completely disorientated from the sudden transition.

I came face to face with a man covered from head to toe in black who simply took my breath away from his immensely tall, lithe form. Everything that was draped around him was as dark as night itself as if he had sewn the night sky itself into his very clothing. From his billowing opera cloak and wide-brimmed hat, to the full mask that lay across his face, he was shrouded in night.

Even though I was heavily ill from the infection in my now, once again, bleeding foot I stood in an attack stance with my bone dagger in hand, letting out a low warning growl not to come near me. I did not know if this man of darkness was a threat to my safety or not but from what I knew from my time in the savannah, danger **always** came with the dark of night.

"I will not harm you, foolish child. I would never intentionally hurt a woman," my supposed savior said sounding agitated but with a hint of amusement.

I let out another low growl but, as hesitant and as cautious as I was, I placed my dagger back into my sash. I had wobbled a bit from this simple action for my wounded foot caused me to balance on only the other. The man immediately took notice and took a quick step towards me and my automatic reaction was to step back on my bad foot which caused an immense burning pain to radiate throughout my entire leg. I howled from the excruciating sensation.

Before I could blink, the man of night was beside me, supporting my weak side and bringing me back up the stairs that were almost completely hidden from sight.

"I have a...friend above. He will bring you to a doctor to take care of that nasty infection of yours."

My eyes widened in fear.

"No!" I cried out, and even though I was heavily ill from said infection, I managed to pull away from the man's grasp, from which he was genuinely surprised and angry that I did so.

"Are you unable to grasp that I am trying to help you? It is not something to take very lightly for it is not a courtesy that I do very often, my dear! Do you wish to die? Is that it? If that is such the case then perhaps Erik will put you back in his torture chamber! Erik would never harm a woman but if said woman commits suicide or dies from infection then that is not Erik's fault!" He roared, lapsing into third tense in the middle of his rage-induced rant.

My own temper flashed its evil head.

"I do not wish to die, far from it believe me! If I go back up there then my _**owners**_ will put me back in that wretched cage of mine and place me back up on display at their beloved freak show! I may be a wild woman of Africa but I have not survived in that cruel place for so long just to be shown off as an attraction! I am still human! Besides, they would cut off my leg and let me be an even bigger freak of nature than let me die of infection!" I spat, fuming.

The man, Erik I assumed since that is what he called himself, froze at the mention of the freak show and through his golden eyes I could tell that he was conflicted inside.

The toil of emotions in his eyes almost made me feel sorry for him; almost being the key word. He looked as if he had absolutely no idea of what to do which seemed to confuse and anger him simultaneously. It would have been hilarious to look at if he didn't seem so...sad. As if he knew himself what it was like to be trapped in a cage and have people ogle and laugh at you for their personal entertainment. I shook that idea out of my head. Erik was very strange, especially with that black mask of his, but he could not possibly know what the inside of a cage felt like since, unlike me, he was normal. Weird and perhaps a bit insane but still normal nonetheless.

"Reem."

I was pulled back to reality as he spoke my name in that heavenly voice of his. With his attire and his voice he seemed like a real angel of darkness...

I did not say a single word. I had gone years without speaking anything and I had already said enough that day. Besides I was tired, ill, and simply ready to die and surrender to Death's sweet embrace.

"I am going to take you to a place that I can...treat you however if I take you there then you will never see the light of day again for I simply cannot risk anyone exposing my whereabouts. Not even my...friend knows exactly where I reside. If I decide to take you there I have only two conditions..."

I waited for him to continue.

"You must never leave and you must **never** take off my mask. If you do Reem," an insane look twinkled in his golden eyes, "then Erik will have to kill you, woman or not."

I nearly snorted in response but did not since he was absolutely serious. I highly doubted that Erik could kill me, who has killed a lion with only a small bone dagger and my bare hands. Indeed, I was on the brink of death but it is said that a lion about to die is at its fiercest.

Closing my weary eyes, I nodded accepting his offer. I would do whatever it took not to be put back in that cage and be made a slave again.

Erik slinked over and I almost lost sight of him since he blended so incredibly well into the dark shadows and was about to scoop my weak self into his arms when I let out a warning growl,

"I am not so feeble that I cannot walk by myself," I said stubbornly, my voice raspy from lack of water and from my little outburst, although I doubted that Erik believed me.

"As you wish."

He began to walk, his footsteps silent, and when I tried to follow, I simply wobbled on my badly infected foot and almost fell over onto the cold, hard floor. Within a flash, Erik was by my side, supporting my weak side with my arm slung around his shoulder. His dark laugh was a mixture of a sigh and a soft chuckle, "Stubborn you may be, but you are in no condition to walk without my help, my dear."

As we began to slowly walk to an unknown direction, I glared in his smug direction. This man was so complicated and strange. First he was yelling at me almost condemning me to die and now he is helping me without a single question in his mind! Erik seemed to notice me staring at him because I could feel his golden eyes gazing back at me curiously.

"You...are very unusual..," I murmured, adverting my eyes from his soul-penetrating gaze.

He laughed faintly as if I had no idea how strange he really was.

"You are one to talk, my dear," he said rather darkly.

We both stopped talking, neither of us ready to reveal our secrets to an almost complete stranger...

* * *

**Thank you for reading this chapter! I was going to make it longer but I ultimately decided that it was best to end it right here. If you think that I should merge the next chapter with this one then please do not hesitate to let me know!**

**Yes, Reem DOES talk and understand English. She just hasn't spoken a word of it in many years although she DOES think in English since, to her, it keeps her sane and "normal." **

**Oh, and thank you for those who have already reviewed and added my story to their alerts. Thank you SO much! It means so much to me like you would not even believe. **

**Once again, the more you review the more I write!**

**-Edelweiss Roses**


	3. Chapter Three: Help

To Be Alone

Chapter Three

Due to my extremely weakened and heavily ill state, it took Erik and I longer than he had initially expected to reach our destination.

On our way, I had spotted a multitude of vermin such as rats and spiders. I gazed at them hungrily since I had not eaten in days. I knew that I could not eat the rats, however, since I knew that they carried a variety of deadly diseases especially if they were consumed by a starving human whose immune system was virtually the weakest in the animal kingdom. In Africa I still had to boil water and cook my meat unlike the wild animals that freely roamed the vast plains there.

Erik took my hungry stares in great amusement, commenting that women are usually scared witless from even the most harmless of what could be considered as pests although he would not allow me to eat any of them, especially when I had asked to consume at least one of the rather large spiders. His exact words were: "If you ate one of them, then you would have to eat its mate as well. Those spiders mate for life and their spouse is never far behind. It would be cruel to eat one and leave the other to wallow in misery from the passing of it's' lover."

I had raised an eyebrow at that comment, not thinking that anyone would care about the death of a simple ugly spider but I kept my mouth shut; not because I did not want to say anything but because my throat was terribly sore from lack of proper hydration and from not using my voice to speak a language in many long years.

Being in the dark, damp, freezing passageways in scantily clothed in attire that would be much more proper in Africa than in Paris, and by leaning on Erik's deathly cold figure, I shivered heavily. When I was hastily taken from his "torture chamber," Erik neglected to bring my prized lioness hide that I presumed was still laying across the metal branches of the hanging tree. I yearned to be wrapped in its familiar warm, comforting soft fur again like I had done so many nights back "home." I wished to be sitting in the large branches of my tree with a large fire going that was cooking my freshly killed meal while I stared at the large moon surrounded in a blanket of shimmering stars. Oh how I missed Africa...

Erik seemed to notice my shivering for he gently draped his large opera cloak over my trembling shoulders.

"We are not too far now. My home is just across the lake."

We were at a lake this far underground? I had not thought that it could be possible for a lake to be there and I almost doubted it, since I could not see it in this pitch darkness especially with my weary eyes, until I was suddenly lifted into a boat. I growled at the back of my throat as I did not like being handled like a ragdoll but it did not seem to affect Erik in even the slightest bit. I guess that my animalistic behavior does not scare him though, I admit, that he does not seem to be the type that would be frightened by a freakish looking woman, whose foot was badly infected, who could barely muster up the energy to make a simple warning growl.

Erik picked up a long, smooth stick and started to push our way through the water to an unknown location. The gentle rocking of the boat, of which I vaguely recalled it being called a gondola from when I visited Venice before I was kidnapped from my family, almost lulled me to sleep. I, however, fought violently against doing so since I did not completely trust this stranger that I barely knew anything about. After all, I had almost perished in _his_ torture chamber.

Speaking of Venice, it seemed so very far away now, a small memory of a past life. I remember floating on the softly rocking waters with smell of the salty ocean in the wind's gently breeze. When I was on one of the gondolas, I had taken off my bonnet to fix my hair and a rather particularly strong breeze swiped my bonnet from my small hand and across the water to the other end of the boat near my father. Father swept my soaked hat from sinking in the water and gently wrung it out before handing it back to me, a smile almost hidden underneath his thick mustache. This event happened just a few months before I was kidnapped and sent to Africa. I smiled softly, a gesture that I hardly ever did anymore, at the fond memory.

My father had been a kind, but strict, man. He read to me every night before I went to sleep although he never taught me to read himself. I remember that whenever I was unable to rest at night, I would light a candle and tiptoe into the library and teach myself written words, every once in awhile attempting to handwrite letters and eventually sentences as well. I hid the papers that I practiced on for if my father had known about it, he would surely put a lock on the library door and I would be denied access to my cherished haven...Nevertheless, I missed my father dearly. I could not miss my mother, however, since she died when she gave birth to me.

The faint smell of burning wax pulled me back to my senses. My eyes darted around the vast darkness until I spotted the dim fire of candlelight. Before long, I was surrounded by a sea of black candles.

Erik certainly owned the night that was for sure.

I looked around, fascinated by the change of scenery as we docked the gondola. In one swift motion, Erik was on the wooden dock. In that single movement, he looked as if he was a mere shadow darting across a wall.

Standing up, I hobbled out of the gondola, almost nearly capsizing the boat from my sick-induced clumsiness. Completely ignoring me, Erik strides over and ran his gloved hand across a Siamese cat that wore a collar with enormous diamonds embedded on it.

"My dearest lady, we have a guest accompanying us today," he murmured fondly to the cat.

The cat strode over towards me, letting out a soft hiss and flicking its tail in my direction. I slowly crouched down on my hands and feet and let out a returning hiss in the back of my throat. The cat, shocked that she received a response, sat down on the soft Persian rug and its pale blue eyes stared into my brown like dirt ones. Our gaze did not falter for a second and if one was to look at our strange encounter, as Erik was doing, it would seem as if we were looking into each other's souls and in a way, we were.

After a moment, the cat raised its small paw in the air and simply meowed, causing another rare smile to cross my lips.

She approved of me.

As the cat exited the room, I cautiously stood back up, adjusting my weight onto my good foot, and looked back in Erik's direction. His golden eyes were completely devoid of feeling as if he was hiding his emotions from me.

"May I inquire as to what exactly happened between you and my lovely Ayesha?"

So, that was the cat's name...

"Ayesha..," I mumbled my throat hoarse and aching, "...wanted to know as to why I was intruding her domain without her permission. I just said that you brought me here and that I was no threat to her...Plus, I promised that I would go hunting for mice with her of which she liked very much."

He paused for a moment, not quite sure what to say to my comments of just having a conversation with his cat, before leaving abruptly without a single word.

I blankly stared in his absent direction before finally collapsing on the Persian rug beneath my feet. Glancing down at my infected foot, I noticed that white and yellow pus was oozing out again, mixing together with the blood. It was a disgusting sight to witness but what I had to do next was even more revolting. Mustering up what little energy I had left, I pressed my chapped lips to my wound and sucked out the infected liquid, spitting it out into the lake. It was the most painless, yet horrible for my taste buds, way to get rid of the infection unless I wanted to painfully dig it out with my fingers. After I was done, I soaked my foot in the water of the lake, washing out what little remaining pus was left. A sigh escaped my lips as the cooling water soaked my wound, ridding myself of the mild burning sensation that came along with it.

"What are you doing?"

My head spun around to see Erik standing behind me, holding something hidden in his hands. I stared at him wearily.

"I'm soaking my foot in the water to get rid of my infection," my voice cracked. I seemed to be losing my voice which is rather ironic since I have not used it in ages.

Erik's' eyes became filled with fury.

"Do you not trust that Erik will take care of you? Erik did say that he would treat you, did he not? And yet you go ahead and try to treat your injury by yourself without the proper supplies, foolish girl!"

I wanted to yell back at him and I was almost desperate to do so but I was too exhausted. All I could muster up was a faint growl, if you could even call it that. I turned my head to watch a black candle, gazing at its elaborate dance of vibrant oranges and yellows in a nonexistent wind. The way it flickered to an unknown melody that is inaudible to human ears, was so incredibly peaceful that all I yearned to do was to sleep right there on the floor.

It seemed as if I was staring at that candle for ages before I heard a faint rustling of clothing beside me.

"My apologies, _mademoiselle_. I should not have shouted at you like I did. It was not very proper of a gentleman," Erik said kneeling down next to me, holding out a small open medical kit, holding out a tiny bottle of brown liquid.

Not wanting to speak I pointed to the open bottle, silently questioning his intent with it. He took notice at what I was trying to say.

"This will kill the infection in your foot if used properly. Now, if you may, your injured foot."

I stared at him warily. Why should I trust him so easily? How do I know that he really is helping me instead of tricking me and giving me arsenic or something like that? Then again, if he really wanted to kill me then he would have left me in his torture chamber and I highly doubt that I would have lasted more than hour in there.

Concluding that he was not a threat - not totally that is - to me, I gently lifted my leg out of the cold water and placed it front of Erik. Taking out a menacing looking needle, he put the medicinal liquid into the syringe and within a few seconds the needle was in the slightly protruding vein in my ankle. I barely took notice of the pain and, to be honest, I would have never thought that I had just had a shot if I had not witnessed it myself. If anything, I would have said that I had been bitten by a mosquito, of which can be deadly in Africa, instead of having a shot. Either Erik was very good at medical treatment or I was so weak that I could barely feel a thing.

Erik then took out what looked to be a sewing needle and wire thread.

"This will hurt but I have to stitch the injury closed otherwise, despite the medicine, it will stay infected," he said, with a hint of a warning in his angelic voice.

"Go ahead," I murmured, my throat scratched.

Without another word, or another warning, Erik threaded the wire thread into the sewing needle replica and stuck it into my flesh, proceeding to stitch me up. Gritting my teeth and sinking my dull fingernails into my thighs, I endured the pain that went along with the sewing of my flesh.

With each stitch, an immense burning sensation followed along with it. It hurt very much but it wasn't the worst pain I have ever felt. That pain was solely reserved for the female lion that mauled my face and arm with her deadly claws. I surprised even myself by surviving that ordeal alive.

The pain suddenly stopped and I looked towards Erik who was already up and walking away. It was only a few seconds before he was back, his black gloved hand outstretched to help me up. Obliging him, I took his cold hand as he lifted me up swiftly. I hobbled a bit as I got used to the precise tight stitching but I soon got hang of my slow stride. I didn't like being so painfully slow as being fast was in my nature and vital towards my survival in the wild.

"Come, _mademoiselle_, let me show you where you will be staying."

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**Yay! I finished another chapter! I particularly enjoyed writing this one especially with Reem's conversation with Erik's little lady, Ayesha. I think I may make that part a little longer and if you all agree please review and let me know!**

**Once again, your reviews keep me writing and so far I have only had one review! So please review...besides it helps me improve my writing!**

**I certainly hope that I am getting Erik right as he is surely a very complicated character. He will become more developed in the next chapter but until then this is more focused on Reem than him. So, don't you worry, there will be much more Erik soon!**

**So, thank you so much for reading and please review!**

**-Edelweiss Roses**


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